Seat pitch of 48 inch with 18 inch recline on 737s; seat pitch of 60 inch on A330 aircraft that transform in to lie flat beds with an 8 degree incline; seating in 2-2 configuration on single aisle aircraft

Economy (Pacific Voyager)

Full meal and beverage service on long haul international flights; nonalcoholic beverage service on domestic flights; snack served on flights less than 6 hours with spirits available for purchase. hot or cold towel service prior to first meal

Personal seat back screens on the A330; shared cabin screens showing documentaries and TV shows on 737s; no in flight entertainment on ATRs and Twin Otters; USB's and power outlets available on the A330

Seat pitch of 32 inch with 6 inch recline or 7.5 inch recline on the A330;

Blankets and pillows available for medium and long haul flights

Baggage allowance of 1 x 23kg bag

History

Commenced services as Fiji Airways in September 1951

Pioneered the code share concept with Qantas in the early 1980s

Acquired domestic airline Sun Air in 2007, rebranded it Pacific Sun and it became Air Pacific's domestic and regional subsidiary

Announced in May 2012 that it would revert to its original name Fiji Airways in June 2013

Both airlines fly over 400 flights a week to 15 cities in 10 countries around the world

Major Strengths

Essential airline service linking Fiji Islands to each other and to the world

Aircraft Types

Safety Rating Criteria

The safety rating for each airline is based on a comprehensive analysis utilising information from the world's aviation governing body and leading association along with governments and crash data. Each airline has the
potential to earn seven stars. For more information see the disclaimer.

The 7 star safety assessment criteria for all airlines is as follows

Is the airline IOSA certified? If yes two stars are awarded; if not, no star is given. What is IOSA Certification? The IATA* Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) certification audit is an internationally recognised and accepted evaluation system designed to assess the operational management and control
systems of an airline. IOSA uses internationally recognised audit principles and is designed to conduct audits in a standardised and consistent manner. Airlines are re evaluated every two years. Registering for IOSA
certification and auditing is not mandatory therefore an airline that does not have IOSA certification may have either failed the IOSA audit or alternatively chosen not to participate.
*IATA (International Air Transport Association)

Is the airline on the European Union (EU) Blacklist? If no a full star is awarded; if yes then no star is given. What is the EU Blacklist? A list of airlines banned from flying into European airspace due to safety concerns arising from alleged poor aircraft maintenance and/or regulatory oversight. Airlines banned by the EU may
have a flawless safety record however the potential risk towards passenger safety is deemed by the EU as too high and a ban is put in place

Has the airline maintained a fatality free record for the past 10 years? If yes the airline is awarded a full star; if not then no star is given.
A fatality is deemed as the death of crew and/or passengers whilst on board the aircraft due to an accident. If deaths occurred through acts of terrorism, highjackings OR pilot suicide they have not been included. If an airline suffered a fatal accident through no fault of its own such as a runway incursion on the active runway (an incident where an unauthorized aircraft, vehicle or person is on a runway) this has also not been included.

Is the airline FAA endorsed? If yes a full star is awarded; if not, no star is given. What is FAA endorsement? In the United States, the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) has a list that bans countries (not airlines) from flying into American Airspace. The ban arises from a deemed inability to adhere to
international aviation standards for aircraft operations and maintenance. According to the FAA Web site, "those that do not meet these international standards cannot initiate new service and are restricted to current
levels of any existing service to the United States while corrective actions are underway". An airline or airlines from a prohibited country may have a flawless safety record however the potential risk to safety is
deemed too high by the FAA to allow operations in American airspace.

Does the country of airline origin meet all 8 ICAO safety parameters? If yes TWO stars are awarded to the airline. However, if the one criteria that is below the average is so by less than 15 per cent it is considered a pass. If 5 to 7 of the criteria are met one star is awarded. If the country only meets up to four criteria no star is given.What is ICAO and what are the 8 parameters? The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) was created to promote the safe and orderly development of international civil aviation throughout the world. It sets standards and regulations necessary for aviation safety, security, efficiency and regularity, as well as for aviation environmental protection. The 8 ICAO audit parameters that pertain to safety are; Legislation, Organization, Licensing, Operations, Airworthiness, Accident Investigation, Air Navigation Service and Aerodromes. For more information on a particular country visit: http://www.icao.int/safety/Pages/USOAP-Results.aspx.

Has the airline's fleet been grounded by the country's governing aviation safety authority due to safety concerns? If yes an additional star will be taken off the total for five years from the time of grounding

Does the airline operate only Russian built aircraft? If yes an additional star will be taken off the total.

Full Service Carrier Rating Criteria

A full service airline typically offers passengers in flight entertainment,checked baggage, meals, beverages and comforts such as blankets and pillows in the ticket price. The seats generally have more recline than
a low cost carrier as well as more leg room. Full service airlines offer passengers the choice of economy or business class travel and on some flights premium economy and first class. The airlines in this category
will transfer baggage between flights and to alliance partners of which most full service carriers are a part (SkyTeam, oneworld, Star Alliance). Full service airlines often have a long history and are flag carriers
for their countries of origin.

Low cost and regional airlines cannot be compared with full service airlines as they offer an entirely different product on typically far shorter routes where the frills do not matter as much. Our rating system for
full service airlines reflects the current market offering to passengers and we have adopted what has become a travel industry standard of seven stars to reflect the very best in full service airline offerings. Low
cost and regional airlines simply cannot offer a seven-star budget product, because seven stars denotes excellence. Therefore you will notice we have adopted a simple easy to follow five-star system which reflects the
most important features to passengers for regional and low cost carriers.

The 7 star assessment criteria for full service airlines is as follows:

Seat pitch

1 star if 30 inch and greater across the airlines fleet in economy class. No star if less than 30 inch across the fleet.

In Flight Entertainment

1 star if Personal Audio/Video On Demand (AVOD) across the fleet in all classes of travel. No star if no Audio/Video On Demand, shared cabin screens only or nothing at all.

1/2 star if mixed across airlines fleet (some of the fleet have AVOD some do not).

NOTE: If an airline has Audio/Video On Demand on all flights except for short routes of 2 hours or less they are still eligible for a full star

Website information

1 star if comprehensive information. No star if no English or incomplete information.

1/2 star if inconsistent information.

Beds

1 star if flat beds in business class on long haul routes. No star if no beds.

1/2 star if angled beds or a mixture of angled and flat beds across the fleet.

NOTE: For airlines that do not operate long haul routes and therefore do not need beds but have business class in a 2-2 seating configuration in single aisle aircraft they are awarded 1 star; seating
configuration in 3-3 with the middle seat left free awards the airline a 1/2 star; if there is not enough information to be sure a 1/2 star is awarded.

Meals

1 star if provision of full meal in economy. No star if a passenger has to pay for meals and alcoholic beverages.

1/2 star if passengers have to pay for meals or if passengers have to pay for alcohol on international routes or if the airline does not offer alcoholic beverages at all regardless of religious beliefs.

NOTE: Provision of alcohol on domestic and/or short haul routes has not been rated as airlines have complex rules based around flight time, route and time of day.

Blankets and pillows

1 star if provided by airline or if passengers have to pay for blankets on domestic and/or short haul routes but they are available. No star if not provided or unavailable.

1/2 star if blankets need to be paid for on medium and long haul routes.

Editor's discretionary

Editors draw on their collective 150 years plus experience to evaluate airlines based on personal experience and/or extensive industry knowledge to award the final star.